OCR Text |
Show The Ogden Valley news Page 10 Volume XVIII Issue III July 15, 2010 Ogden Valley Pathways Student Essays Do Our Kids Have Nature-Deficit Disorder? Note: The following essays are from sixth grade students who entered their essays in Ogden Valley Pathways’ annual contest. This year’s theme was, “What I Can Do to Support and Enhance Park and Recreation Areas in Ogden Valley?” Making Parks Work for Everyone By Emma Hedges Ogden Valley has many wonderful parks and recreation areas that people can enjoy. We all have some responsibility, though, to make the parks work for everyone. There are many things that we can do to help support parks in Ogden Valley and to take good care of equipment. We can use equipment properly and follow the park rules. In addition, the person overseeing the park needs to make sure that the people using the park always follow the rules. For my part, if I see anyone not following the regulations, I should try to remind them of the rules. If someone has vandalized any equipment, I could try to repair the damage if possible. If it is not possible, I can report it to the person in charge. I also need to follow the rules so others will follow my example. Amazing Parks By Tanner McKay Every year at least once, families go to the park. They go for sports, games, birthday parties, or even just to walk the dog. Sometimes we get so busy having fun, that we are not taking time to notice the garbage that has been dropped or left behind. We should be taking time to see the beauty of this world in these great parks, but sometimes it is covered up with garbage. So that is why we all need to work together in saving our parks. By picking up our trash and weeding flower beds and using the recycle cans, we can do our part. We want to be able to breathe fresh air that the trees give us and actually see the beauty of this world. I love the parks and I go there all the time especially in the summer. Now when I go there I will try harder to clean up after myself. I hope we all do. Parks and Recreation By Bailee Howe I think that communities and neighborhoods can take care of the parks. By not littering, vandalizing parks and places in Ogden Valley. I think how you could prevent that is getting in groups to pick up trash, and repainting over the vandalized places. The reason why we should do this is because it is bad for the environment, and it looks trashy. If we had all the parks clean in the community more people would want to go there, cause if it was trashy they wouldn’t want their kids to get cuts from glass or get sick by picking up stuff off the grounds in the parks and there places in Ogden Valley. Kids love the park but not when it is dirty that is another reason why we should clean up the parks. Many Ogden areas are vandalized, and have trash everywhere, well I think everyone can help clean that up. I think the parks should be always clean, and other many places here in Ogden Valley, so let’s make a difference, and help these parks, and the recreation areas! I hope that someday people will respect all parks, and Ogden Valley recreation places too! The End Preserving Our Parks By Keighley Nunn What if someone took away all the parks or you couldn’t play on the park area? How would that make you feel? I know that it would make me feel awful. That is why we need to take care of our parks and preserve them and most importantly enjoy them. Some children in the world don’t have playgrounds, they only have dirt. We have soccer fields and playground equipment. It all comes back to what if you didn’t have a park? I will promise to clean up garbage that I see to the side or on the parks. I will also treat things carefully and not write or destroy them, because I enjoy playing at parks and I don’t want it all taken away. Everything that we love could be taken away in seconds so help take care of our parks. Helping Can Be Fun and Rewarding By Beth Froerer Isn’t it great to have a park, reservoir, or hiking trail in your neighborhood? Instead of kids playing in the streets or driveways, they can play on a playground, mountainside, or go swimming. Also, they each provide beautiful trees for shade, spots to have a picnic, play tag, or have a soccer game. Wouldn’t it be easy to grab gloves and a garbage bag and go pick up trash in one of Ogden Valley parks? I’ve done that a few times, and it’s really fun and rewarding. Go rake up dead grass and leaves in the parks, pick up garbage by the reservoir, and stay on the path of a hiking trail. It makes it look so much better and is good for the environment. Instead of using gasoline to power boats through the Reservoir, take a kayak and paddle around instead. Ride your bike there in place of driving. And instead of walking through parking lots to get to another store, take a long walk on a hiking trail. Never break glass at any of these places, and always pick up after yourself. And remember, get as much fresh air and exercise as you can! new programs for diabetics Come see our new offiCe Our goal is to decrease medications and Our programs include treatments for We take improve your health with exercise, physical muscle and joint pain including back most and neck. Home visits available. therapy, and nutritional counseling. insurances Insurance may cover the cost of this program. (801) 745-1700 By Richard Louv Note: This is the third in a three part series of articles. Information from the “Educational Leadership” journal: December 2009/January 2010 | Volume 67 | Number 4; Health and Learning Pages 24-30. Article being reprinted by permission. Join the Movement Even more important is the emerging Leave No Child Inside movement. The Children & Nature Network, a nonprofit organization that advances the movement, reports that some 60 regional campaigns have sprung up in the United States and Canada over the past four years, as have a number around the globe, which together make up a growing international network of thousands of individuals, families, and organizations. Regional campaigns include local, state, and national park and recreation agencies, educators, health-care professionals, conservationists, children, college students, government officials, and businesspeople. The movement appears to transcend political and religious divisions. That bodes well for schools; in a sense, the movement could be creating a new constituency for education. Get Parent-Teacher Groups Involved As a practical matter, parent-teacher groups can support schools and educators financially and by presenting annual Natural Teacher Awards to educators who have used the natural world as an effective learning environment for their students. Parentteacher groups, schools, and educators can also encourage parents to create family nature nights. For example, in Omaha, Nebraska, a consortium formed to foster nature-based play is hosting five family nature nights at local elementary and middle schools, which will offer hands-on, nature-based play activities for children and their families. Start an Outdoor Club A 2nd grade teacher and his wife in Roanoke, Virginia, decided to spend more time with their three children on weekends doing family hikes and other outdoor adventures. One day, their 5-year-old son asked, “Why are we the only family having this much fun?” So the family mapped out a monthly outdoor adventure schedule for the coming year and invited neighbors to join. Today, they have 352 families on their email list. Member families meet on Saturdays or Sundays at various parks and other venues where they experience the natural world. A similar parentorganized group in California, the Inland Empire Kids Outdoors club, has signed up 227 families. Families in any kind of neighborhood can start such clubs—and they can do it now. (Go to www. childrenandnature.org for a tool kit for jump-starting family nature clubs.) What if family nature clubs and networks really caught on? What if they grew in number, just as book clubs have in recent decades? Not only would they help reduce the stress that parents and children experience in their hurried lives, but also they would promote stronger family bonds. And stronger families mean stronger schools. As the Austin Middle School principal and I talked about these approaches, he became increasingly excited, especially about family nature clubs. “I could encourage parents to create these groups,” he said, “and even help them weave in some curriculum-based learning.” The Gift We Need to Give Evidence suggests that the broad movement to connect children to nature could send calmer, more curious, better-balanced children into the classroom. Getting outside is also a great stress reducer for teachers. Canadian researchers found that teachers expressed renewed enthusiasm for teaching when they had time outdoors (Dyment, 2005). In an era of increased teacher burnout, we should not underestimate the effect of green schools and outdoor education on teachers. Thinking about that photo of the little boy on the beach, I wonder: How many other little Ansels and Anselettes are out there now? And what gifts could they offer future generations—if we give them the gift of nature? 4776 East 2600 North ~ Eden Resources to Help Connect Students to the Natural World The following resources can help educators reconnect students to the natural world: On the Web • Nature-Deficit Disorder Survey. Do you have this "disorder"? To find out, take this online survey at <www. eeweek.org/resources/survey.htm> The survey was created by an 8th grade teacher for National Environmental Education Week. • The Children & Nature Network (www.childrenandnature.org). In addition to presenting current research and news, the Children & Nature Network offers information about ways to bring the benefits of nature to schools, families, and communities. The author, with educator Cheryl Charles & others, founded the network to build the movement to connect children to the natural world. • Natural Teachers Network (www.childrenandnature.org). This new network honors, supports, & provides tools to educators who take their students outside to learn. • National Wildlife Federation (www.nwf.org). Be sure to read the federation's new study, Time Out: Using the Outdoors to Enhance Classroom Performance. • Nature Rocks (www.naturerocks.org). Parents and teachers can locate nature opportunities in their own zip codes and download a free guide to creating family nature "staycations." Professional Resource Programs • Project Learning Tree (www.plt.org). Created by the American Forest Foundation, this multidisciplinary environmental education program for PreK–12 students includes topics ranging from forests, wildlife, and water to community planning, waste management, and energy. • Project WILD (www.projectwild.org). Project WILD offers an interdisciplinary instructional program for K–12 educators that ties nature-oriented concepts to all major school subjects, requirements, and skill areas. • Classroom Earth (http://classroomearth.org). Created by the National Environmental Education and Training Foundation, Classroom Earth maintains a directory of K–12 environmental education programs and resources for teachers, parents, and students. • National Wildlife Refuge System (www.fws.gov/ refuges). Managed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the system indicates wildlife refuges by zip code and offers teacher training and other education opportunities. Publications • Green Teacher magazine, available in English, Spanish, and French (www.greenteacher.com). The magazine, which comes out four times each year, contains practical articles and activities for students ages 6–18. • The Learning with Nature Idea Book: Creating Nurturing Outdoor Spaces for Children. By Nancy Rosenow, James R. Wike, and Valerie Cuppens (Arbor Day Foundation, 2007). This book includes 10 guiding principles for establishing an outdoor classroom. References • American Institutes for Research. (2005). Effects of outdoor education programs for children in California. Palo Alto, CA: Author. Available at <www.air.org/ news/documents/outdoorschoolreport.pdf> • Dyment, J. (2005). Gaining ground: The power and potential of school ground greening in the Toronto District School Board. Toronto, Ontario: Evergreen. • Huh, S. Y., & Gordon, C. M. (2008). Vitamin D deficiency in children and adolescents: Epidemiology, impact, and treatment. Reviews in Endocrine and Metabolic Disorders, 9(2), 161–170. • Kuo, F. E., & Taylor, A. F. (2004). A potential natural treatment for attention deficit/ hyperactivity disorder: Evidence from a national study. American Journal of Public Health, 94(9), 1580–1586. • Lieberman, G. A., & Hoody, L. L. (1998). Closing the achievement gap: Using the environment as an integrating context for learning. Poway, CA: Science Wizards. • Rose, K. A., Morgan, I. G., Ip, J., Kifley, A., Huynh, S., Smith, W., et al. (2008). Outdoor activity reduces the prevalence of myopia in children. Ophthalmology, 115(8), 1279–1285. • Science Daily. (2008, October 29). Neighborhood greenness has long-term positive impact on kids' health. Available: <www.sciencedaily.com/ releases/2008/10/081028074327.htm> • Sobel, D. (2008). Children and nature: Design principles for educators. Portland, ME: Stenhouse. • Richard Louv is the author of “Last Child in the Woods: Saving Our Children from Nature-Deficit Disorder” (Algonquin Books, 2008) and Chairman of the Children & Nature Network (www.childrenandnature. org). He was awarded the Audubon Medal in 2008. Horse Property! Located down behind the old car wash at the end of the cul-de-sac. 801-745-4000 2555 WOLF CREEK DR. EDEN STORE HOURS: MON. - SAT. 7 AM - 10 PM SUNDAY 7 AM - 9 PM 9305 E. 1700 S. Huntsville Any 2 Bags Clover Club Chips 50c with coupon Expires 8/1/10 801-940-9000 Any Cantaloupe 50c OFF with coupon Expires 8/1/10 www.tourogdenrealestate.com Any 1/4 Sheet Cake from the Bakery $1.00 Expires OFF with coupon 8/1/10 Any Boarshead Sliced Meat/Cheese 50c OFFwith coupon Two lbs. or more Expires 8/1/10 Any Family Pack Steaks from the Meat $1.00 Expires OFF8/1/10with coupon Dept. Design & Maintenance Sprinkler Systems, Lighting Waterfalls & Ponds Custom Patios & Fire Pits Demolition & Renovation Snow Plowing, Salt & Sanding |